Improvement in feeding mechanisms fob sewing-machines



T. K. KEITH. Feeding Mechanism for Sewing-Machines.

No. 195,932. Patented Oct. 9, 1877.

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PATENT QFFIGE.

THOMAS K. KEITH, OF HAVERHILL, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN FEEDING MECHANISMS FOR SEWING-MACHINES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 195,932, dated October9, 1877; application filed May 25, 1877.

To all whom it may concern:

-Be it known that I, THOMAS K. KEITH, of Haverhill, in the county ofEssex and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in Feeding Mechanism for Sewing-Machines, of which thefollowing, when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, isafull, clear, and exact specification.

This invention has for its object to adapt the feed-dog of asewingmachine to reciprocate the material being stitched, instead ofpropelling it in one direction, and to enable the material to be turnedlaterally by the operator, without detriment, while the presser-footbears against the feed-dog, the reciprocating and lateral movement thusimparted causing the formation of elongated stitches, which may becombined so as to radiate or form starshaped or other ornamentalfigures, according to the will of the operator.

My invention consists in the combination, with the stitch-formingmechanism of a sewing-machine, of a feeddog, provided with a singlepoint to bear against the material and act as a pivot therefor, andmechanism to reciprocate said feed-dog in a substantially horizontalplane, whereby the material is reciprocated, instead of being propelledin a single direction, all of which I'will now proceed to describe.

Figure l is a front elevation of a portion of a sewing-machine, providedwith mechanism for producing the feed-motion above described. Portionsare represented as broken out, the better to exhibit the parts. Fig. 2is a side elevation of the same, the table being shown in section. Fig.3 is a representation of a sample of the simplest class of Work whichthe feed and mechanism performs.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

In the drawings, (0,12, and 0 represent, respectively, the table,needle, and presser-foot, all constructed as usual. (I is the feed-dog,which is fixed to the lever e, pivoted at c to the stationary barf,extending downward from the table. The upper portion of this lever isheld by the spiral spring 12. The feed-dog d is pointed at its upperend, and is adapted to bear against the material to be stitched, and actas a pivot therefor, allowing the material to be turned laterally by theoperator in any direction. 9 is a spring, secured at its lower end tothe lever e, and bent out from the lever at its upper end by means ofthe regulatingscrew h, which passes through the lever e, and pressesagainst the spring g. k is a cam or eccentric, (its shape beingrepresented, in part by dotted lines in Fig. 1) fixed to the shaft 0,upon which is also fixed the gear-wheel I. The wheel m, having acircumference just one-half that of the wheel I, meshes into it, and isfixed upon the main or actuating shaft '22.

Thus it will be seen that with each revolution of the wheel l(requiringtwo revolutions of the wheel m) the cam k forces the feed-dog 01attached to the lever 0 back once, and the spring 19 pulls it forwardonce, so that two motions, a back and a forward, are made by the feedwith each revolution of the wheel I and cam 7:, both motions being inthe same plane, which is substantially horizontal, so that the materialto be stitched is reciprocated, instead of being propelled in a singledirection, as by an ordinary feed-dog.

In stitching the figure or design of a star, (shown in Fig. 3,) theinner stitches aare taken when the spring p has drawn the feed forward,and the outer stitches y are taken when the cam k has forced it back.After each inner stitch x the material is slightly moved, so that thestar shape can be produced; otherwise the stitching would be simply backand forth on a single line.

By turning the screw h and forcing the spring g farther from the leverc, the course of the feed is lengthened, as the cam faces the leverfarther from it, and vice versa.

Various designs may be produced by this feed, of which the one shown inFig. 3 is but a single sample.

I claim as my invention The combination, with the stitch-formingmechanism of a sewing-machine, of a feeddog, provided with a singlepoint to bear against the material and act as a pivot therefor, andmechanism, substantially as described, to reciprocate said feed-dog in asubstantially horizontal plane, whereby the material is reciprocated,instead of being propelled in a single direction, as and for the purposeset forth.

THOMAS K. KEITH.

Witnesses:

HENRY W. WILLIAMS, FRANK E. DAVIS.

